Atal Bihari Vajpayee is the second Jawaharlal Nehru: Shiv Sena (UBT)'s Sanjay Raut

Mumbai: Hailing Atal Bihari Vajpayee on his 100th birth anniversary, Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sanjay Raut on Wednesday described the former Prime Minister and the second Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru of India.

“The present-day BJP may be maligning the legacy of (India's first prime minister) Pandit (Jawaharlal) Nehru, but Vajpayee was the second Nehru. He was the Nehru of non-Congress parties,” said Raut, a close aide of Shiv Sena (UBT) head and former Maharashtra Chief Minister Uddhav Thackeray.

Even then Prime Minister Pandit Nehru appreciated and blessed Vajpayee, he said.

“Despite being a staunch Hindutvawadi, Vajpayee believed the country belongs to all,” he said, adding that the Vajpayee was aways all inclusive and he commanded tremendous respect from late Shiv Sena founder Balasaheb Thackeray.

“Whenever 'raj dharma' is under threat, the country will remember Vajpayee,” said Raut, the journalist-politician.